How the process works

Step 1 — Eligibility review (15–30 minutes)

Before any forms are prepared, Capital Tax Limited confirms the Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedures (SFOP) is actually the right path for you. The four qualifying tests — US filing obligation, non-willful conduct, 330-day foreign presence, no US abode — are each a potential disqualifier. Getting this wrong is the single biggest risk: if SFOP doesn't apply to your situation, filing under it anyway invites the IRS to treat the filing as a failed submission and subject you to the full penalty menu.

In this step, Capital Tax Limited also identifies the years in play (typically the most recent three tax years, but the calendar matters — in April, the "three years" window differs from October).

Step 2 — Document gathering (1–4 weeks)

This is where most of the elapsed time lives, because it depends on you digging up paperwork. For three years of federal returns and six years of FBARs, typical documents:

• Foreign bank and brokerage statements for all six years (each calendar year's high balance matters for FBAR)
• Foreign pay slips or local-country tax returns
• Foreign pension / retirement account statements
• Rental property income and expense records, if applicable
• Records of foreign tax paid, for Foreign Tax Credit claims
• Proof of US physical-presence absence (passport stamps, visa records, residence certificates) for the 330-day test

Banks can usually provide the older statements if you ask; some charge fees. If you can't locate everything, there are methods to reconstruct reasonable estimates, though it's cleaner to work from primary documents where possible.

Step 3 — Return preparation (2–4 weeks)

Capital Tax Limited prepares three years of Form 1040 federal returns, any applicable state returns, and up to six years of FinCEN Form 114 (the FBAR). Each return applies the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion or Foreign Tax Credit — whichever produces the better result for you — and accounts for any Form 8938 (FATCA) reporting if your foreign financial assets cross the thresholds.

You review drafts before anything is signed.

Step 4 — The non-willful certification (Form 14653)

This is the legally significant piece of the whole package. Form 14653 (for SFOP) is a signed statement in which you certify, under penalty of perjury, that your non-compliance was not willful.

The certification needs a narrative — a plain-English explanation of why you didn't file. "I moved abroad in 2012 for work and, like most people in my situation, assumed that because I paid taxes in my country of residence I had no US filing obligation. I learned otherwise in 2025 when a colleague mentioned FBAR at a dinner," is the kind of statement the IRS sees. Generic statements like "I didn't know" without context tend to draw scrutiny.

Capital Tax Limited drafts this with you, you edit it into your own voice, and you sign. If there are facts in your history that could read as willful (e.g., you were advised to file and declined), this is the moment to pull a tax attorney into the conversation.

Step 5 — Submission

The complete package — three returns, six FBARs, Form 14653 — goes to a specific IRS address reserved for Streamlined submissions. You pay any tax due plus statutory late-payment interest at the time of submission.

The FBARs are actually filed electronically via the BSA E-Filing System (they're FinCEN filings, not IRS filings, but the IRS processes the package as one case).

Step 6 — IRS processing (2–8 months, typically)

The IRS does not send a confirmation letter for Streamlined acceptance the way they do for, say, an installment agreement. Silence generally means acceptance. If something's wrong, they'll contact you — usually a request for more information rather than an outright rejection.

Once the processing window passes without contact, you're effectively back in compliance for all the years filed. From there, you're on the normal annual cycle: file your current-year return by April 15 (or June 15 with the automatic expat extension) and your FBAR by April 15 (with an automatic extension to October 15).

What this looks like on your calendar

For a typical case where documents are available and the facts are clean:

• Week 1: Eligibility review, engagement, document request sent
• Weeks 2–4: You gather documents; Capital Tax Limited begins return drafting as materials arrive
• Weeks 4–6: Draft returns + FBARs ready; you review
• Week 6–7: Form 14653 narrative drafted together; you sign everything
• Week 7: Package submitted; any tax + interest paid
• Month 3–8: IRS processes silently; you move on with your life

Ready to start?

The eligibility review is the first thing, and it's brief — a single session is usually enough to tell whether SFOP fits your situation.

Check my eligibility